Disney returns to hand-drawn animation in Mickey’s ‘Croissant de Triomphe’

The success of computer-animated movies, shows and shorts has all but stopped the traditional hand-drawn medium in entertainment. Though using hand-drawn animation has become rare, it isn’t totally abandoned.

Disney won an Oscar for their popular animated short ‘Paperman’, and the company is hoping to build on that success by releasing a new series of short-films. The latest short to be featured stars one of the most iconic characters of all time… Mickey Mouse. Like ‘Paperman’ the new series, including the video above, is a mix of hand-drawn and computer animation.

The video, is called ‘Croissant de Triomphe’ and it stands as another homage to classic Disney animated shorts of yesteryear. The short relies on some clever wordplay, with the name of the short based on Paris’ historic monument, the Arc de Triomphe.

In the film viewers will once again find Mickey as the leading role, only this time he is speeding through Paris on a moped, dodging cars, people and obstacles. Mickey is a delivery driver for his long-time girlfriend Minnie Mouse. The film is spoken in French, though it shouldn’t be hard for anyone to follow the plot of the simple short.

This marks the first animated film in a series of what will be 19 new cartoons from Disney. These films will be available on the Disney Channel, Disney.com and WATCH Disney Channel, all of which will be starting on June 28, 2012.

Fans of the once popular animated show ‘Dexter’s Laboratory’ may recognize the name Paul Rudish, who was also the creator of The Powerpuff Girls. Rudish has assumed the role of executive producer and director for the new Walt Disney Television Animation project that produces these shorts.